16 Comments

well the locals and volunteers seem to be handling the needs that Federal Workers will not. I have not seen too many federal workers with the mule trains or private helicopters. Walmart is doing it's stuff independently as well. Volunteers are the best effective persons to manage disasters as the Federal Government really does not care. Florida is managing as it does not rely on FEMA and is preparing ahead of the storms. The Governor is there on TV, phones and actions are instantly done.

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Thanks for this reporting, Thomas. I know there are more important (life!) issues to deal with, but any thoughts on the potential impact to the Nov election?

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Trump’s publicity stunt in Valdosta GA was vulgar and unnecessary. Let first responders and FEMA do their jobs. If Harris comes she should be as unobtrusive as possible

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Am I correct in remembering that the Trump Administration awarded virtually NONE of the relief aid requested by North Carolina for Hurricane Matthews damages?. Ditto Puerto Rico.

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Check out Greg Sargent's podcast "The Daily Blast" today. He interviews Anderson Clayton, chair of the NC Democratic Party, She is all about "leave the politics at the door, how can we help people?" As it should be!

https://newrepublic.com/article/186546/horror-nc-trump-already-pushing-ugly-hateful-new-lie-helene

In the last several days, I have gotten emails from every single NC Democrat running for state-wide office that has my email address (and that is a lot of them!) all with practical information on how to help out with $$ or donations, how to report someone missing and/or request a welfare check, etc. All the Democratic field offices are being assessed to see if they are safe to open and those that are will be used for staging relief efforts.

The GOP has no ground game in NC (other than paid canvassers and people paid to put out candidate signs). Even if they had a presence I serious doubt the RNC would have authorized humanitarian aid if it meant less money in Trump's pocket.

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Thomas, you nailed it! We should all spread your column on social media!

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I am a resident of Asheville. I am pissed at that motherfucker coming in and spewing political trash in our area. Go home shmuck. We don’t want you here. And it is not true. Help came here immediately and the rest as soon as the roads into the area were cleared. At first, there was only one interstate open in the area that would permit help to arrive. Trump- you are scum.

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Mr. Jacobs, you don't even see the hypocrisy in your own words. WHO came to help "immediately and the rest as soon as the roads into the area were cleared". Who did the clearing sir?

If it were me, and I was in the middle of a devastating once in a lifetime event, I would be less worried about who was coming to help or shed light on the situation and more on what they actually did.

A leader cannot bring resources to the area without having eyes on. A good leader would never do that. I have had over 500 hours of didactic leadership training and easily twice as many (over 1000) hours of practical training not to mention the actual hours of leadership I have provided over the course of my career.

Best be glad people volunteering are just happy to help others and not worried about your politics. Asheville is surrounded by conservatives. You are a liberal/dem/prog whatever. You are literally "biting the hand that feeds you" sir.

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I hope you and your family are safe and well-stocked to survive this epic tragedy.

I hope people are donating generously to the NC releif fund set up by Gov. Cooper. (http://nc.gov/donate).

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I agree. Fuck trump and the republicans who are whining! This disaster is really bad and the response is MUCH BETTER than what bush did 19 years ago. Add in the fact that Project 2025 wants to end this kind of funding, and you have a picture of the great divide republicans and trump want. These people are truly fools and trump is their king! His ads make me sick to my stomach!

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Huley Brown, you don't even see the hypocrisy in your own words. WHO came to help right out the gate? The conservative folks in the area, that's who. WHO came and started rescuing people immediately? The conservative folks in the area, that's who. WHO needed rescuing in Asheville? The liberal dems, that's who.

Prepared, resilient people who LOST everything rolled up their sleeves and started helping their neighbor. Hard working conservatives are there on the ground. Where are you keyboard hero?

Me, I am committed to caring for my wheelchair bound sister who can do nothing but lift a spoon to her lips otherwise I would be there in a flash doing the exact same thing, no matter what the people's politics are. Because it's the right thing to do. And, where are you right now? Are you there?

If it were me, and I was in the middle of a devastating once in a lifetime event, I would be less worried about who was coming to help or shed light on the situation and more on what they actually did.

Best be glad people volunteering are just happy to help others and not worried about your politics. Asheville is surrounded by conservatives. You are a liberal/dem/prog whatever. You are literally "biting the hand that feeds you" sir.

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There is no hypocrisy here. There are so many on the ground there including my own company. I am doing what I am allowed to do at a distance. The problem is that there are so many who claim that there is no help and I know they are there. I am not a keyboard cowboy but you may be. If you blame things on anyone but the maga republicans who hamstring efforts by putting out fake news! trump is not there. So, before you accuse anybody, maybe you should really take a hard look around. Looks like everyone needed help there. My tax dollars and my company are there. There are so many lies behind my told by trump and his maga friends. Stop politicizing this crisis by pretending only one type of person needs help. There have been official news releases saying what I said: maga lies are hampering efforts to recover. You should be ashamed of yourself for trolling that crap.

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Okay. You win.

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And by the way, I am an independent.

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Okay, you win. You are far superior to me

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Far from superior to you. I admire what you are doing for your sister. Not many can do that.

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